


Ink and Flower Petals

by Dubbrubz



Category: youtube - Fandom
Genre: Alternate Universe - Flower Shop & Tattoo Parlor, Florist!Matt, M/M, Tattoo Artist!Nate
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-03-28
Updated: 2017-03-28
Packaged: 2018-10-12 07:52:22
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,618
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10485915
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Dubbrubz/pseuds/Dubbrubz
Summary: An AU where Matt works in a little flower shop and Nate is the tattoo artist next door.





	

It was no secret; California was a strange place. There were many things wrong with the place, and one of them was building placement logic. This could be determined by the placement of a tattoo shop and a flower shop right next door to each other.

Matt always thought this was strange, seeing the two shops were complete polar opposites. But, he had to admit, the tattoo artist was pretty cute. The brunette saw him walking to work every day wearing the same leather jacket, no matter how hot it was. On colder mornings he wore a charcoal gray hoodie under it, hood drawn up to protect his gauged ears.

His raven black hair was always a sleepy mess, and Matt swore he could hear him singing to himself as he walked, holding a thermos of what he assumed to be coffee. The tattoo shop next door was actually very well kept, and rock music poured from the open windows. He’d never dared to go next door, but secretly, he really wanted to. He could just never work up the courage. The building seemed to be buzzing with life, people constantly pouring in and out of the doors, this noting that the artist must’ve been very well known.

The little flower shop he worked in was the complete opposite. The inside of the building was silent, perfumed sweetly by the hundreds of types of flowers sold. Normally the only customers the small shop would draw in were little old ladies and men rushing to grab a bouquet of flowers for their sweethearts. Matt honestly hated the silence, so he kept the windows to his own shop open, just to he could catch the faint sounds of music from the other building, seeing his boss wouldn’t allow him to play his own music and he normally left his phone at home.

No one really called him, anyway. He imagined actually going next door and talking to the artist, but he could never work up the courage. He honestly would feel like a gigantic idiot wandering over, knowing he’d turn into a blundering mess as soon as he tried speaking.  
But, it seemed luck would play in his favor. One night, a horrible storm would crash through the downtown California area, stripping most of the shops and buildings of their power. Thankfully, the small flower shop wouldn’t lose power, meaning Matt wouldn’t have to worry about going out back, dragging the stupid gas powered generator out and trying to get it to run. He stood boredly at the counter, his chin pressed into one hand, his other arm laying against the glass.

He’d let his mind wander while he stared at the rain stained windows, sighing softly. Soon, however, he saw the same raven haired male rushing to work, jogging down the soaked concrete. He seemed in a rush, almost like he was late. The brunette chuckled softly, noticing his cheeks were flushed pink as he passed. He really was cute, but Matt would rather admire him from afar.  
The more he thought about it, however, the more he realized that was kind of stalker-like and decided it would be best to stop. So, he turned his attention to the supply of flowers stored near the back of the shop and the bouquets he had to arrange. The flowers were normally kept near the back to keep them fresh, this method proving to work in the few years that he’d worked in the tiny shop.

He found vases and plastic as well and began to arrange, humming to keep his mind occupied and keep it from wandering too much. His process would be interrupted, however, as a knock on the glass counter would pull him out of his daze. “Hello, welcome to–” Matt cut himself off as he looked up and came face-to-face with a pair of shimmering ebony eyes and a dimpled grin that made his heart melt.

“Hey, sorry to bother you,” The raven haired male started, hands resting in his jean pockets, his arms exposed to the somewhat warm air in the shop. “My power is down and I was wondering if you had a back up generator or something I could borrow.” He was dressed in a Blink-187 shirt and ripped skinny jeans, his hair looking windswept in the front and his eyes shielded behind retro frame glasses. His arms were covered with sleeve tattoos that exploded with color, and all in all, he looked so much cuter up close.

Matt’s brain stopped functioning momentarily, leaving the guy to raise an eyebrow and wave a hand in front of his face. “Um, hello?” The brunette blinked, shaking his head.

“Huh?” The guy laughed, a musical sound that chimed in Matt’s ears.

“I asked if you have a generator I could borrow.” The brunette laughed nervously, scratching the back of his neck.

“Oh, right… Uh, yeah, I can go get it for you. Meet me out back.” The male nodded and smiled, slipping back out of the front of the store.

It took Matt a moment to process what the fuck just happened. A cute guy had just walked into his shop and spoke to him. He ran a hand through his hair and sucked in a breath. _Keep it together, Matthew…_ He stepped out from behind the counter and again trecked to the back of the small store. He dragged the large generator out to the alley way that was sandwiched between the two shops. The artist gave another grin and tipped his head. “Thank you so much. I’ll be sure to return it tonight. I just don’t have enough time to go out and grab one before my first appointment gets here.”

Matt laughed nervously. “Oh, no no. Keep it for as long as you need. This store couldn’t lose power even if I wanted it to.” The guy raised an eyebrow.

“So, you own this place?”

“Oh God, no. I just work here. What about you?” He pointed to the shop next door. “I’m assuming you own that place?”

“Yeah, I’m working on my second year anniversary.” The guy took the generator handle and looked up at Matt. “I don’t believe I caught your name. And, sadly, I’m pretty sure gorgeous isn’t it.” Matt spluttered, turning bright red.

“A-Are you flirting with me?”

“Are you embarrassed?” The raven haired male teased.

“Wh-What?! N-Nonononono!” The brunette wanted to shrink back into his sweater and just hide there forever. Here he was, looking like a gigantic fucking idiot in front of an amazing looking guy. The artist laughed.

“Hey, no need to get defensive. I’m Nate. Nice to meet you.”

“M-Matt…” The two shared a handshake before Nate tilted his head towards the tattoo shop.

“Wanna come in? I’ll make some coffee for you.” Matt ran a hand through his hair.

“U-Uh, sure…”

Nate smiled and held the back door open for the taller male, watching as he slid in. The shop was actually nicer from the inside then Matt originally thought. The walls were a warm cream color, even in the darkened space around them. Nate worked on powering up the generator and soon had it softly humming, the lights flicking on. “There we go.” He hummed, looking around. Matt noticed black binder-like books scattered everywhere and pointed to one of them.

“What are those?” The artist hummed and looked in the direction Matt was pointing, chuckling.

“Oh, that? That’s one of my art books. Just to give people ideas if they come in here not knowing what they want.”  
The florist tilted his head to the side, wandering over and picking the binder up, opening it and flipping through. All kinds of drawings and sketches filled the plastic pages, some black and white and others exploding with color. He took in each, all of them beautifully designed and detailed.

“These are amazing, Nate.” The florist looked up to see the smaller male scratching the back of his neck, chuckling and blushing.

“Oh, heh, thank you.” _Oh my fucking God, he’s adorable!_ The two were in silence for a minuet before Nate snapped his fingers. “Right, coffee. Uh… I’ll get that going for you.” He disappeared in the back of the shop, leaving Matt to look around.

This place was so nice and it radiated warm energy, much like it’s owner. He could’ve honestly lived here if he really had the chance to. His thoughts wandered as he looked around, only to be snapped back to reality when Nate approached him with a steaming mug of coffee, beaming up at him. “Here ya go. Hope you don’t mind, I don’t normally keep cream and sugar around here. I usually drink my coffee black.”

“Oh, no!” Matt took the mug with a sweet grin. “I don’t mind.” He took a sip of the caffeinated drink, sighing at the warmth of the liquid. Nate chuckled and nodded.

“Cool... So, Matt, would you possibly like to grab lunch later after I get done with my morning clients?”

The brunette almost choked on his coffee. Was Nate seriously asking him out to lunch?! “I-I mean… Yeah. That’d be lovely!” The raven-haired male breathed a sigh and ran a hand through his adorably messy hair.

“Alright, cool. I’ll come pick you up on my lunch break then, if that’s alright with you?”

“Sounds great. See you then.” Matt finished off his coffee and handed the mug back to Nate before sliding out of the shop. It took all of his willpower not to skip away like a giddy school girl. He was just asked to go to lunch with an attractive and sweet guy. This day couldn’t get any better…


End file.
